Printed in Hackney: Meet the Makers of Our Refills
A visit to Calverts in East London, where our notebook refills are printed, stitched and finished with care.
Our notebook refills are printed by Calverts, an independent printing cooperative based in Hackney, East London. Established in 1977, Calverts has a long history of working with designers, publishers, galleries and creative businesses, producing everything from books and magazines to beautifully printed stationery.
When we were looking for a printer, we wanted somewhere that understood the importance of the details. Paper quality, print finish and stitching all make a big difference. Printing our refills in London also means we're working with a British business whose experience we value.
We visited Calverts to see our notebooks being printed and to check the colour, finish and overall quality before they made their way to Cartelle HQ. And of course Fred, our trusty photographer, came along to capture the process!
There's something incredibly satisfying about seeing a design move from a screen to a physical object, hearing the loud churn of the printing presses and watching the neat stacks of freshly printed sheets.
Made to be filled, and replaced
A Cartelle Companion is designed to hold interchangeable notebook refills that sit neatly inside the leather cover. You might use a lined refill for work or a dotted one for sketches and ideas, when one is full, you simply take it out and replace it.
Each refill has 64 pages, with a stitched spine and a sturdy dark grey card cover with subtle gold pinstripe detailing. We started with lined and dotted formats, giving you different options depending on how you like to use your notebooks. A Daily Planner format is on the cards for our next print run.
The leather cover is designed to last for years, the notebooks inside are there to be filled, replaced and filled again.